Market vs. Mandate
The two parties have approached healthcare reform from opposite sides of the field to try and attack an age –old beast- rising cost. In one word, the Obama campaign proposes a potential mandate to insure those who don’t’ have health insurance while the McCain camp proposes a market-driven approach to drive more competition across state lines for consumers to choose. Either way the employer, who still holds the purse strings, will pay a price-how much who knows. It is unlikely that employers will ever get out of the business of providing benefits. Its far too important to corporate competitiveness especially against the productivity of foreign manufacturers and suppliers. Either way it will be critical for there to be a far deeper understanding of the consumption demographics of people consuming care if we are to have any impact in trying to figure out how we are going to pay for it and how much we should pay. With gas at 5$, a global food shortage, the rubber band is being stretched to a point of no return. The fix to healthcare system cannot be a shot gun approach-the stakes are far too high.
More to come…
Dr. P